This book presents the latest advances in ultrafast science, including both ultrafast optical technology and the study of ultrafast phenomena. It covers picosecond, femtosecond, and attosecond processes relevant to applications in physics, chemistry, biology, and engineering. Ultrafast technology has a profound impact in a wide range of applications, amongst them biomedical imaging, chemical dynamics, frequency standards, material processing, and ultrahigh-speed communications. This book summarizes the results presented at the 19th International Conference on Ultrafast Phenomena and provides an up-to-date view of this important and rapidly advancing field.

This textbook provides an exposition of equilibrium thermodynamics and its applications to several areas of physics with particular attention to phase transitions and critical phenomena. The applications include several areas of condensed matter physics and include also a chapter on thermochemistry. Phase transitions and critical phenomena are treated according to the modern development of the field, based on the ideas of universality and on the Widom scaling theory. For each topic, a mean-field or Landau theory is presented to describe qualitatively the phase transitions. These theories include the van der Waals theory of the liquid-vapor transition, the Hildebrand-Heitler theory of regular mixtures, the Griffiths-Landau theory for multicritical points in multicomponent systems, the Bragg-Williams theory of order-disorder in alloys, the Weiss theory of ferromagnetism, the Neel theory of antiferromagnetism, the Devonshire theory for ferroelectrics and Landau-de Gennes theory of liquid crystals. This textbook is intended for students in physics and chemistry and provides a unique combination of thorough theoretical explanation and presentation of applications in both areas. Chapter summaries, highlighted essentials and problems with solutions enable a self sustained approach and deepen the knowledge.

Refrigeration, Air Conditioning and Heat Pumps, Fifth Edition, provides a comprehensive introduction to the principles and practice of refrigeration. Clear and comprehensive, it is suitable for both trainee and professional HVAC engineers, with a straightforward approach that also helps inexperienced readers gain a comprehensive introduction to the fundamentals of the technology. With its concise style and broad scope, the book covers most of the equipment and applications professionals will encounter. The simplicity of the descriptions helps users understand, specify, commission, use, and maintain these systems. It is a must-have text for anyone who needs thorough, foundational information on refrigeration and air conditioning, but without textbook pedagogy. It includes detailed technicalities or product-specific information. New material to this edition includes the latest developments in refrigerants and lubricants, together with updated information on compressors, heat exchangers, liquid chillers, electronic expansion valves, controls, and cold storage. In addition, efficiency, environmental impact, split systems, retail refrigeration (supermarket systems and cold rooms), industrial systems, fans, air infiltration, and noise are also included.

Among resummation techniques for perturbative QCD in the context of collider and flavor physics, soft-collinear effective theory (SCET) has emerged as both a powerful and versatile tool, having been applied to a large variety of processes, from B-meson decays to jet production at the LHC. This book provides a concise, pedagogical introduction to this technique. It discusses the expansion of Feynman diagrams around the high-energy limit, followed by the explicit construction of the effective Lagrangian - first for a scalar theory, then for QCD. The underlying concepts are illustrated with the quark vector form factor at large momentum transfer, and the formalism is applied to compute soft-gluon resummation and to perform transverse-momentum resummation for the Drell-Yan process utilizing renormalization group evolution in SCET. Finally, the infrared structure of n-point gauge-theory amplitudes is analyzed by relating them to effective-theory operators. This text is suitable for graduate students and non-specialist researchers alike as it requires only basic knowledge of perturbative QCD.

This book is the second edition of Numerical methods for diffusion phenomena in building physics: a practical introduction originally published by PUCPRESS (2016). It intends to stimulate research in simulation of diffusion problems in building physics, by providing an overview of mathematical models and numerical techniques such as the finite difference and finite-element methods traditionally used in building simulation tools. Nonconventional methods such as reduced order models, boundary integral approaches and spectral methods are presented, which might be considered in the next generation of building-energy-simulation tools. In this reviewed edition, an innovative way to simulate energy and hydrothermal performance are presented, bringing some light on innovative approaches in the field.

This book continues the biannual series of conference proceedings, which has become a classical reference resource in traffic and granular research alike, and addresses the latest developments at the intersection of physics, engineering and computational science. These involve complex systems, in which multiple simple agents, be they vehicles or particles, give rise to surprising and fascinating phenomena. The contributions collected in these proceedings cover several research fields, all of which deal with transport. Topics include highway, pedestrian and internet traffic; granular matter; biological transport; transport networks; data acquisition; data analysis and technological applications. Different perspectives, i.e., modeling, simulations, experiments, and phenomenological observations are considered.

Why writing a book about a specialized task of the large topic of complex systems? And who will read it? The answer is simple: The fascination for a didactically valuable point of view, the elegance of a closed concept and the lack of a comprehensive disquisition. The fascinating part is that field equations can have localized solutions exhibiting the typical characteristics of particles. Regarding the field equations this book focuses on, the field phenomenon of localized solutions can be described in the context of a particle formalism, which leads to a set of ordinary differential equations covering the time evolution of the position and the velocity of each particle. Moreover, starting from these particle dynamics and making the transition to many body systems, one considers typical phenomena of many body systems as shock waves and phase transitions, which themselves can be described as field phenomena. Such transitions between different level of modelling are well known from conservative systems, where localized solutions of quantum field theory lead to the mechanisms of elementary particle interaction and from this to field equations describing the properties of matter. However, in dissipative systems such transitions have not been considered yet, which is adjusted by the presented book. The elegance of a closed concept starts with the observation of self-organized current filaments in a semiconductor gas discharge system. These filaments move on random paths and exhibit certain particle features like scattering or the formation of bound states. Neither the reasons for the propagation of the filaments nor the laws of the interaction between the filaments can be registered by direct observations. Therefore a model is established, which is phenomenological in the first instance due to the complexity of the experimental system. This model allows to understand the existence of localized structures, their mechanisms of movement, and their interaction, at least, on a qualitative level. But this model is also the starting point for developing a data analysis method that enables the detection of movement and interaction mechanisms of the investigated localized solutions. The topic is rounded of by applying the data analysis to real experimental data and comparing the experimental observations to the predictions of the model. A comprehensive publication covering the interesting topic of localized solutions in reaction diffusion systems in its width and its relation to the well known phenomena of spirals and patterns does not yet exist, and this is the third reason for writing this book. Although the book focuses on a specific experimental system the model equations are as simple as possible so that the discussed methods should be adaptable to a large class of systems showing particle-like structures. Therefore, this book should attract not only the experienced scientist, who is interested in self-organization phenomena, but also the student, who would like to understand the investigation of a complex system on the basis of a continuous description.

This eleventh volume in the Poincare Seminar Series presents an interdisciplinary perspective on the concept of Time, which poses some of the most challenging questions in science. Five articles, written by the Fields medalist C. Villani, the two outstanding theoretical physicists T. Damour and C. Jarzynski, the leading experimentalist C. Salomon, and the famous philosopher of science H. Price, describe recent developments related to the mathematical, physical, experimental, and philosophical facets of this fascinating concept. These articles are also highly pedagogical, as befits their origin in lectures to a broad scientific audience. Highlights include a description of the manifold fundamental physical issues in play with time, in particular with the changes of perspective implied by Special and General Relativity; a mathematically precise discussion of irreversibility and entropy in the context of Boltzmann's and Vlasov's equations; a thorough survey of the recently developed "thermodynamics at the nanoscale," the scale most relevant to biological physics; a description of the new cold atom space clock PHARAO to be installed in 2015 onboard the International Space Station, which will allow a test of Einstein's gravitational shift with a record precision of 2 x 10-6, and enable a test of the stability over time of the fundamental constants of physics, an issue first raised by Dirac in 1937; and last, but not least, a logical and clarifying philosophical discussion of 'Time's arrow', a phrase first coined by Eddington in 1928 in a challenge to physics to resolve the puzzle of the time-asymmetry of our universe, and echoed here in a short poeme en prose by C. de Mitry. This book should be of broad general interest to physicists, mathematicians, and philosophers.

Complexity Science and Chaos Theory are fascinating areas of scientific research with wide-ranging applications. The interdisciplinary nature and ubiquity of complexity and chaos are features that provides scientists with a motivation to pursue general theoretical tools and frameworks. Complex systems give rise to emergent behaviors, which in turn produce novel and interesting phenomena in science, engineering, as well as in the socio-economic sciences. The aim of all Symposia on Chaos and Complex Systems (CCS) is to bring together scientists, engineers, economists and social scientists, and to discuss the latest insights and results obtained in the area of corresponding nonlinear-system complex (chaotic) behavior. Especially for the "4th International Interdisciplinary Chaos Symposium on Chaos and Complex Systems," which took place April 29th to May 2nd, 2012 in Antalya, Turkey, the scope of the symposium had been further enlarged so as to encompass the presentation of work from circuits to econophysics, and from nonlinear analysis to the history of chaos theory. The corresponding proceedings collected in this volume address a broad spectrum of contemporary topics, including but not limited to networks, circuits, systems, biology, evolution and ecology, nonlinear dynamics and pattern formation, as well as neural, psychological, psycho-social, socio-economic, management complexity and global systems.

This book presents thermal field theory techniques, which can be applied in both cosmology and the theoretical description of the QCD plasma generated in heavy-ion collision experiments. It focuses on gauge interactions (whether weak or strong), which are essential in both contexts. As well as the many differences in the physics questions posed and in the microscopic forces playing a central role, the authors also explain the similarities and the techniques, such as the resummations, that are needed for developing a formally consistent perturbative expansion. The formalism is developed step by step, starting from quantum mechanics; introducing scalar, fermionic and gauge fields; describing the issues of infrared divergences; resummations and effective field theories; and incorporating systems with finite chemical potentials. With this machinery in place, the important class of real-time (dynamic) observables is treated in some detail. This is followed by an overview of a number of applications, ranging from the study of phase transitions and particle production rate computations, to the concept of transport and damping coefficients that play a ubiquitous role in current developments. The book serves as a self-contained textbook on relativistic thermal field theory for undergraduate and graduate students of theoretical high-energy physics.

This SpringerBrief deals with the control and optimization problem in hybrid electric vehicles. Given that there are two (or more) energy sources (i.e., battery and fuel) in hybrid vehicles, it shows the reader how to implement an energy-management strategy that decides how much of the vehicle's power is provided by each source instant by instant. Hybrid Electric Vehicles: *introduces methods for modeling energy flow in hybrid electric vehicles; *presents a standard mathematical formulation of the optimal control problem; *discusses different optimization and control strategies for energy management, integrating the most recent research results; and *carries out an overall comparison of the different control strategies presented. Chapter by chapter, a case study is thoroughly developed, providing illustrative numerical examples that show the basic principles applied to real-world situations. The brief is intended as a straightforward tool for learning quickly about state-of-the-art energy-management strategies. It is particularly well-suited to the needs of graduate students and engineers already familiar with the basics of hybrid vehicles but who wish to learn more about their control strategies.

This short primer offers non-specialist readers a concise, yet comprehensive introduction to the field of classical fluids - providing both fundamental information and a number of selected topics to bridge the gap between the basics and ongoing research. In particular, hard-sphere systems represent a favorite playground in statistical mechanics, both in and out of equilibrium, as they represent the simplest models of many-body systems of interacting particles, and at higher temperature and densities they have proven to be very useful as reference systems for real fluids. Moreover, their usefulness in the realm of soft condensed matter has become increasingly recognized - for instance, the effective interaction among (sterically stabilized) colloidal particles can be tuned to almost perfectly match the hard-sphere model. These lecture notes present a brief, self-contained overview of equilibrium statistical mechanics of classical fluids, with special applications to both the structural and thermodynamic properties of systems made of particles interacting via the hard-sphere potential or closely related model potentials. In particular it addresses the exact statistical-mechanical properties of one-dimensional systems, the issue of thermodynamic (in)consistency among different routes in the context of several approximate theories, and the construction of analytical or semi-analytical approximations for the structural properties. Written pedagogically at the graduate level, with many figures, tables, photographs, and guided end-of-chapter exercises, this introductory text benefits students and newcomers to the field alike.

This book highlights cutting-edge topics in contemporary physics, discussing exciting advances and new forms of thinking in evolving fields with emphases both on natural phenomena and applications to modern engineering. It provides material for thought and practice in nanophysics, plasma physics, and electrodynamics. Nanophysics and plasmas are synergic physical areas where the whole is more than the sum of the parts (quantum, atomic and molecular, electrodynamics, photonics, condensed matter, thermodynamics, transport phenomena). The authors emphasize both fundamentals and more complex concepts, making the contents accessible as well challenging. Nanoscale properties and physical phenomena are explained under the umbrella of quantum physics. Advances made in the physical knowledge of the nanoworld, and its metrology are addressed, along with experimental achievements which have furthered studies of extreme weak forces present at nano- or sub-micron scales. The book does not focus in detail on the diversity of applications in nanotechnology and instrumentation, considering that the reader already has basic prior knowledge on that. It also covers an introduction to plasma universe phenomenology, the basics of advanced mathematics applied to the electromagnetic field, longitudinal forces in the vacuum, concepts of helicity and topological torsion, SU(2) representation of Maxwell equations, 2D representation of the electromagnetic field, the use of the fractional derivative, and ergontropic dynamics. The chapters include theory, applications, bibliographic references, and solved exercises. The synergies of the book's topics demonstrate their potential in critical issues, such as relieving humans from barriers imposed by energetic and entropic dependencies and penetrating the realm of weak forces at the nanoscale. The book will boost both post-graduate students and mature scientists to implement new scientific and technological projects.

Design happens everywhere, whether in animate objects (e.g., dendritic lung structures, bacterial colonies, and corals), inanimate patterns (river basins, beach slope, and dendritic crystals), social dynamics (pedestrian traffic flows), or engineered systems (heat dissipation in electronic circuitry). This "design in nature" often takes on remarkably similar patterns, which can be explained under one unifying Constructal Law. This book explores the unifying power of the Constructal Law and its applications in all domains of design generation and evolution, ranging from biology and geophysics to globalization, energy, sustainability, and security. The Constructal Law accounts for the universal tendency of flow systems to morph into evolving configurations that provide greater and easier access over time. The Constructal Law resolves the many and contradictory ad hoc statements of "optimality", end design, and destiny in nature, such as minimum and maximum entropy production and minimum and maximum flow resistance, and also explains the designs that are observed and copied in biomimetics. Constructal Law and the Unifying Principle of Design covers the fundamentals of Constructal Theory and Design, as well as presenting a variety of state-of-the-art applications. Experts from the biological, physical and social sciences demonstrate the unification of all design phenomena in nature, and apply this knowledge to novel designs in modern engineering, such as vascularization for self-healing and self-cooling materials for aircraft, and tree fins and cavities for heat transfer enhancement.

This dissertation contributes to the understanding of fundamental issues in the highly interdisciplinary field of colloidal science. Beyond colloid science, the system also serves as a model for studying interactions in biological matter. This work quantitatively investigated the scaling laws of the characteristic lengths of the structuring of colloidal dispersions and tested the generality of these laws, thereby explaining and resolving some long-standing contradictions in literature. It revealed the effect of confinement on the structuring, independently of specific properties of the confining interfaces. In addition, it resolved the influence of roughness and charge of the confining interfaces on the structuring and as well providing a method to measure the effect of surface deformability on colloidal structuring.

The celebrated Parisi solution of the Sherrington-Kirkpatrick model for spin glasses is one of the most important achievements in the field of disordered systems. Over the last three decades, through the efforts of theoretical physicists and mathematicians, the essential aspects of the Parisi solution were clarified and proved mathematically. The core ideas of the theory that emerged are the subject of this book, including the recent solution of the Parisi ultrametricity conjecture and a conceptually simple proof of the Parisi formula for the free energy. The treatment is self-contained and should be accessible to graduate students with a background in probability theory, with no prior knowledge of spin glasses. The methods involved in the analysis of the Sherrington-Kirkpatrick model also serve as a good illustration of such classical topics in probability as the Gaussian interpolation and concentration of measure, Poisson processes, and representation results for exchangeable arrays.

This is the third edition of a well-received textbook on modern physics theory. This book provides an elementary but rigorous and self-contained presentation of the simplest theoretical framework that will meet the needs of undergraduate students. In addition, a number of examples of relevant applications and an appropriate list of solved problems are provided.Apart from a substantial extension of the proposed problems, the new edition provides more detailed discussion on Lorentz transformations and their group properties, a deeper treatment of quantum mechanics in a central potential, and a closer comparison of statistical mechanics in classical and in quantum physics. The first part of the book is devoted to special relativity, with a particular focus on space-time relativity and relativistic kinematics. The second part deals with Schroedinger's formulation of quantum mechanics. The presentation concerns mainly one-dimensional problems, but some three-dimensional examples are discussed in detail. The third part addresses the application of Gibbs' statistical methods to quantum systems and in particular to Bose and Fermi gases.

Convection in Porous Media, 4th Edition, provides a user-friendly introduction to the subject, covering a wide range of topics, such as fibrous insulation, geological strata, and catalytic reactors. The presentation is self-contained, requiring only routine mathematics and the basic elements of fluid mechanics and heat transfer. The book will be of use not only to researchers and practicing engineers as a review and reference, but also to graduate students and others entering the field. The new edition features approximately 1,750 new references and covers current research in nanofluids, cellular porous materials, strong heterogeneity, pulsating flow, and more.

A molecular view on the fundamental issues in polymer physics is provided with an aim at students in chemistry, chemical engineering, condensed matter physics and material science courses. An updated translation by the author, a renowned Chinese chemist, it has been proven to be an effective source of learning for many years. Up-to-date developments are reflected throughout the work in this concise presentation of the topic. The author aims at presenting the subject in an efficient manner, which makes this particularly suitable for teaching polymer physics in settings where time is limited, without having to sacrifice the extensive scope that this topic demands.

Gaining a theoretical understanding of the properties of ultra-relativistic dense matter has been one of the most important and challenging goals in quantum chromodynamics (QCD). In this thesis, the author analyzes dense quark matter in QCD with gauge group SU(2) using low-energy effective theoretical techniques and elucidates a novel connection between statistical properties of the Dirac operator spectrum at high baryon chemical potential and a special class of random matrix theories. This work can be viewed as an extension of a similar correspondence between QCD and matrix models which was previously known only for infinitesimal chemical potentials. In future numerical simulations of dense matter the analytical results reported here are expected to serve as a useful tool to extract physical observables such as the BCS gap from numerical data on the Dirac spectrum.

This book is intended as an introduction to the field of planetary systems at the postgraduate level. It consists of four extensive lectures on Hamiltonian dynamics, celestial mechanics, the structure of extrasolar planetary systems and the formation of planets. As such, this volume is particularly suitable for those who need to understand the substantial connections between these different topics.

Multi-phase flows are part of our natural environment such as tornadoes, typhoons, air and water pollution and volcanic activities as well as part of industrial technology such as power plants, combustion engines, propulsion systems, or chemical and biological industry. The industrial use of multi-phase systems requires analytical and numerical strategies for predicting their behavior. .In its fourth extended edition the successful monograph package "Multiphase Flow Daynmics" contains theory, methods and practical experience for describing complex transient multi-phase processes in arbitrary geometrical configurations, providing a systematic presentation of the theory and practice of numerical multi-phase fluid dynamics. In the present second volume the methods for describing the mechanical interactions in multiphase dynamics are provided. This fourth edition includes various updates, extensions, improvements and corrections. "The literature in the field of multiphase flows is numerous. Therefore, it is very important to have a comprehensive and systematic overview including useful numerical methods. The volumes have the character of a handbook and accomplish this function excellently. The models are described in detail and a great number of comprehensive examples and some cases useful for testing numerical solutions are included. These two volumes are very useful for scientists and practicing engineers in the fields of technical thermodynamics, chemical engineering, fluid mechanics, and for mathematicians with interest in technical problems. Besides, they can give a good overview of the dynamically developing, complex field of knowledge to students. This monograph is highly recommended," BERND PLATZER, ZAAM In the present second volume the methods for describing the mechanical interactions in multiphase dynamics are provided. This fourth edition includes various updates, extensions, improvements and corrections. "The literature in the field of multiphase flows is numerous. Therefore, it is very important to have a comprehensive and systematic overview including useful numerical methods. The volumes have the character of a handbook and accomplish this function excellently. The models are described in detail and a great number of comprehensive examples and some cases useful for testing numerical solutions are included. These two volumes are very useful for scientists and practicing engineers in the fields of technical thermodynamics, chemical engineering, fluid mechanics, and for mathematicians with interest in technical problems. Besides, they can give a good overview of the dynamically developing, complex field of knowledge to students. This monograph is highly recommended," BERND PLATZER, ZAAM "The literature in the field of multiphase flows is numerous. Therefore, it is very important to have a comprehensive and systematic overview including useful numerical methods. The volumes have the character of a handbook and accomplish this function excellently. The models are described in detail and a great number of comprehensive examples and some cases useful for testing numerical solutions are included. These two volumes are very useful for scientists and practicing engineers in the fields of technical thermodynamics, chemical engineering, fluid mechanics, and for mathematicians with interest in technical problems. Besides, they can give a good overview of the dynamically developing, complex field of knowledge to students. This monograph is highly recommended," BERND PLATZER, ZAAM

The present Volume 4 of the successful monograh package "Multiphase Flow Dynamics"is devoted to selected Chapters of the multiphase fluid dynamics that are important for practical applications but did not find place in the previous volumes. The state of the art of the turbulence modeling in multiphase flows is presented. As introduction, some basics of the single phase boundary layer theory including some important scales and flow oscillation characteristics in pipes and rod bundles are presented. Then the scales characterizing the dispersed flow systems are presented. The description of the turbulence is provided at different level of complexity: simple algebraic models for eddy viscosity, simple algebraic models based on the Boussinesq hypothesis, modification of the boundary layer share due to modification of the bulk turbulence, modification of the boundary layer share due to nucleate boiling. The role of the following forces on the mathematical description of turbulent flows is discussed: the lift force, the lubrication force in the wall boundary layer, and the dispersion force. A pragmatic generalization of the k-eps models for continuous velocity field is proposed containing flows in large volumes and flows in porous structures. A Methods of how to derive source and sinks terms for multiphase k-eps models is presented. A set of 13 single- and two phase benchmarks for verification of k-eps models in system computer codes are provided and reproduced with the IVA computer code as an example of the application of the theory. This methodology is intended to help other engineers and scientists to introduce this technology step-by-step in their own engineering practice. In many practical application gases are solved in liquids under given conditions, released under other conditions and therefore affecting technical processes for good of for bad. Useful information on the solubility of oxygen, nitrogen, hydrogen and carbon dioxide in water under large interval of pressures and temperatures is collected, and appropriate mathematical approximation functions are provided. In addition methods for the computation of the diffusion coefficients are described. With this information solution and dissolution dynamics in multiphase fluid flows can be analyzed. For this purpose the non-equilibrium absorption and release on bubble, droplet and film surfaces under different conditions is mathematically described. A systematic set of internally consistent state equations for diesel fuel gas and liquid valid in broad range of changing pressure and temperature is provided. This new second edition includes various updates, extensions, improvements and corrections. In many practical application gases are solved in liquids under given conditions, released under other conditions and therefore affecting technical processes for good of for bad. Useful information on the solubility of oxygen, nitrogen, hydrogen and carbon dioxide in water under large interval of pressures and temperatures is collected, and appropriate mathematical approximation functions are provided. In addition methods for the computation of the diffusion coefficients are described. With this information solution and dissolution dynamics in multiphase fluid flows can be analyzed. For this purpose the non-equilibrium absorption and release on bubble, droplet and film surfaces under different conditions is mathematically described. A systematic set of internally consistent state equations for diesel fuel gas and liquid valid in broad range of changing pressure and temperature is provided. This new second edition includes various updates, extensions, improvements and corrections.

This book is about the theoretical and practical aspects of the statistics of Extreme Events in Nature. Most importantly, this is the first text in which Copulas are introduced and used in Geophysics. Several topics are fully original, and show how standard models and calculations can be improved by exploiting the opportunities offered by Copulas. In addition, new quantities useful for design and risk assessment are introduced.

"The career structure and funding of the universities [...] currently strongly d- courages academics and faculties from putting any investment into teaching - there are no career or ?nancial rewards in it. This is a great pity, because [...] it is the need toengage indialogue,and to makethings logicaland clear,that istheprimary defence against obscurantism and abstraction. " B. Ward-Perkins, The fall of Rome, Oxford (2005) This is the ?rst volume of a planned two-volume treatise on non-equilibrium phase transitions. While such a topic might sound rather special and a- demic, non-equilibrium critical phenomena occur in much wider contexts than their equilibrium counterparts, and without having to ?ne-tune th- modynamic variables to their 'critical' values in each case. As a matter of fact, most systems in Nature are out of equilibrium. Given that the theme of non-equilibrium phase transitions of second order is wide enough to amount essentially to a treatment of almost all theoretical aspects of non-equilibrium many-body physics, a selection of topics is required to keep such a project within a manageable length. Therefore, Vol. 1 discusses a particular kind of non-equilibrium phase transitions, namely those between an active, ?- tuating state and absorbing states. Volume 2 (to be written by one of us (MH) with M. Pleimling) will be devoted to ageing phenomena.